They confirmed that the items were counterfeit
Holiday shoppers hoping to get a good deal on upscale Ugg boots or Burberry bags at Rice’s Market in Solebury were disappointed Tuesday morning.
A raid by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and Solebury police shut down nine vendors peddling the popular items, as well as those selling cosmetics.
“They’re counterfeit,” said Solebury Detective Cpl. Roy G. Ferrari, explaining why he and 20 federal agents seized the Ugg and Burberry products.
He said no vendors were arrested. The retail value of the items taken was $150,000.
Ferrari said that Tuesday’s crackdown followed an investigation that began months ago. He said police had received complaints about the counterfeit items from shoppers and ugg bailey button companies that hold the rights to the products. He contacted federal authorities, who joined the investigation.
Patricia Reilly, spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said that Tuesday’s raid was one phase of an ongoing probe into the “theft of intellectual property.”
She said agents and police purchased items at the flea market in recent months and “showed them to the ugg boots ukrights holders” for Uggs and Burberry.
“They confirmed that the items were counterfeit,” said Reilly.
Reilly said agents interviewed the vendors and obtained “quite a bit of evidence” in their investigation into uncovering the main sources of the counterfeit merchandise.
“We’re trying to find the big fish,” she said.
Ferrari agreed that the popular Bucks flea market is not a big time player in the counterfeit goods marketplace.
“Rice’s is a great place to begin an investigation, not to end it,” said Ferrari.
He said a number of boxes used to transport the counterfeit merchandise were marked from China. A few boxes were from some other foreign sources.
According to Reilly, one faux Ugg boot vendor told agents that he wasn’t the boss and then pointed out another Ugg seller at a table far down the aisle.
By the time agents had arrived at that stall, the reputed “boss” had run off, leaving his goods behind.
Ferrari said that the raid began at 9 a.m., and authorities remained at the market until noon.
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